Ray’s History Radio & TV Picks. No.39. 31 Oct 2015.

Drama on 3: Light Shining in Buckinghamshire
BBC Radio 3: Sun 1 Nov 2015, 21.00 – 22.50. 1 / 3
First performed in 1976, Light Shining in Buckinghamshire focuses on the millennial movements that erupted during the English civil war in the 1640s. At the heart of the play is an edited dramatisation of The Putney Debates of 1647. The radical Levellers argue for liberty and universal suffrage while the military establishment stands for security and property as the basis for electoral eligibility.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01rydqw

The Invention of France
BBC Radio 4: Mon 2 Nov 2015, 11.00 – 11.30. 1 / 3
Misha Glenny explores the history of France during the years following the army’s defeat at Agincourt in 1415. With contributions from Helen Castor, Anne Curry, Francoise Michaud-Frejaville, and Desmond Seward: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06kndlx

Voices of the First World War
BBC Radio 4: Mon 2 to Fri 6 Nov 2015, daily 13.45 – 14.00.
Presented by Dan Snow, the second five programmes to be broadcast this year look at the events of 1915, including veterans’ memories of their first trips home on leave, the rise of U-Boat attacks, the disastrous Battle of Loos, and the experiences of those fighting on the Eastern Front as the war expanded, in Salonika and Mesopotamia. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7p9l/broadcasts/upcoming

Drama: Tommies
BBC Radio 4: Wed 4 Nov 2015, 14.15 – 15.00. 3 / 4: 4 November 1915.
On their way up the river Tigris, Signallers Ahmadullah and Zarbab have a perilous mission to deliver a wireless set to beleaguered forces in Baghdad. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06mg2vg

The Stuarts in Exile
BBC Four: Tue 3 Nov 2015, 21.00 – 21.00. 2 / 2
Dr Clare Jackson investigates the lives of the Scottish and English Jacobites who supported the deposed Catholic Stuarts during the 18th century. Jackson reveals how George I and George II’s reigns were plagued with threats from Catholic rivals both in England and abroad. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06l1vxh

Restoring Britain’s Landmarks
Channel 4: Wed 4 Nov 2015, 20.00 – 21.00. 4 / 4.
Final episode of the series exploring how The Landmark Trust restores historical buildings; Alastair Dick-Cleland travels to a Cornish copper mine, where the engine house is currently under refurbishment. Meanwhile, John Evetts searches for an antique telescope to be installed in Belmont House, and Anna Keay discovers more about the life of Victorian astronomer Dr Bangay:
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/restoring-britains-landmarks

The Last Kingdom
BBC Two: Thu 5 Nov 2015, 21.00 – 21.00. 3 /8
The young hero Uhtred petitions the newly crowned king, Alfred, for protection. However, his alliance with the Saxons creates tensions between him and Brida, his Viking lover. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0344rr3